Loving life and Embracing a New Earth

Summer Lovin’ Extremes

I love you but I think I’ve had enough. I love your long days and balmy nights, all the mango sorbet and fresh salads you make me eat. However, as for the intensity of your heat, summer, I think I’ve had enough.

With one month left of summer in Australia we’ve had some scorchers. We’ve had days where stepping outside was like walking into a furnace, where temperatures have soared to all time highs.

Last Thursday, camped in the picturesque seaside town of Port Elliot, South Australia, the temperature reached a record high of 46.8C.

I could have been in worse places I suppose!

Fortunately our camper was set up adjacent to Horseshoe Bay, and for the early and latter part of the day, that’s where we were. The water was blissful and a cooling respite from the heat.

But the sand was unbearable. In between the lathering of sunscreen and swims we sought out air conditioned venues and cafes out of the heat.

Two days later it was Australia Day and within the park the flags were flying high. Blessedly, the weather had returned to a degree of normality.

No, this is not our van but it’s so cute I couldn’t resist taking a pic

Travelling in summer always reminds me of how diverse Australia is. Through deserts, beaches, outback, mountains, our land and temperatures are as extreme as each other. Balance is good.

I’ve been away for a week and in that time we travelled close to 1800kms. We drove from Melbourne to Port Elliot with the jewelled Horseshoe Bay the undisputed queen of the area.

Looking down at Horseshoe Bay

On the way home, breaking our drive back from South Australia, we stopped off at the Lakeside Tourist Park in Halls Gap.

Our timing was brilliant. The Australia Day public holiday had come and gone and 500 people had just checked out of the park. It was blissfully quiet, except for the wild locals.

Drinks with the ducks!

Friendly cockies

Skippy at our doorstep

The flocks of friendly cockatoos made their presence felt at drinks time. Close by kangaroos grazed, deers and emus roamed. We didn’t bother to set up our barbecue that night. Instead we cooked and enjoyed dinner in the massive camp kitchen where we met a couple from Port Elliot. It’s a small world!

On our last morning, graced with a late checkout, we trekked to the Pinnacle at the Grampians. I’ve walked it before but there’s always different ways of getting there. Like life, it’s great to have an end goal and pinnacle in mind but it’s the scenery along the way that makes it memorable.

Every trip we take, every walk we tackle offers something different that challenges our perspective on life.

Whether it’s hot, cold, whether we’re feeling high or low, rushed or slow, life is never dull.

For me, January has raced by in a blur and blogging has taken a back seat. Life sometimes demands that and for me the focus and energy has been on family and on those around me.

However, a new month brings changes in circumstances. My son starts Year 12 (his final year of high school) and hubby is working interstate so in February I’ll be saying yes to a few invitations and stepping into new territory. Things are shifting.

Here’s to looking ahead to new opportunities and keeping our eyes open to those moments that take us down different paths.

Life might be challenging and summer temperatures might be extreme but the universe never gives us more than we can cope with. Say YES to life and it might just give us what we need.

In fact the more I think about it, the more I think I might just make the most of the warmth while it’s here.

Have a beautiful month ahead.

In light and summer love

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Looks like you had a fabulous time. By way of comparison, it is 11am here and the temperature has managed to creep up to 2 degrees centigrade. Watching the Big Bash at the moment and it’s bringing home that contrast!

It sure is, and it’s great to see and hear of experiences I’ll never have! The Big Bash brings some warmth and sunshine to our cold winter. And if I’m feeling brave enough I can watch England play in the West Indies later 😉

Miriam, this a beautiful post and just perfect for the coldest day of the year here in England. You’re right about treasuring your summer warmth, although 46 is crazy high! Wow! That is a lot of travelling in a week and thank you for sharing some of your trip. The beaches looks heavenly and so inviting, as for the pinnacle, you’re giving me the jitters sitting so close the edge … the view is stunning though! Wonderful reflections about life, our journey within it … it’s always good to pause, step back and just feel again! May the contentment and strength of the past month stay with you as you enter a new month, a new and exciting school year for your son. hugs xx

Thanks so much for your kind words and good wishes Annika. We had a lovely week away but now it’s back to the busy-ness of life. Still, I’m grateful for a nice break and for the moment at least the heat is not too intense. Sending you some of our warm rays and big hugs from across the ocean. Stay warm. xx

Thank you for those warm rays … I’m feeling warmer already. Just back from a refreshing bracing walk in the rare sunshine, snuggled at my desk with a blanket and tea, not quite donned the fingerless gloves yet! Don’t lose your inner peace and calm as busy-ness descends! ❤️

Where I live it is winter. We’ve had an unusually long period of Winter temps in Minnesota. -20 to -30 below zero for weeks with wind chill making it -55 to -65 below zero. So your summer pictures have reminded me this will end. Scorching temps are not my favorite either! But camping on the bay would make up for it! Thanks for this awesome post! 😊

Hello dear Miriam, a lovely insight into your trip, and indeed for anyone who hasn’t visited Australia, a lovely insight into life in January.
Your pictures look wonderful and your adventure sound wonderful too. Such heat though…I do hope it all settles down for Feb.
Wishing you well with your month of new experiences.
All the best to your son as he begins Year 12, too.
Much love from me 💞💐

It sounds like you two managed to squeeze a lot of adventure and travel in your trip. Kudos on living fully and reminding me to do the same. Warm weather and beaches sound pretty wonderful in the midst of winter. It’s always an interesting contrast to read about countries in the southern hemisphere with the opposite seasons.

I agree Brad. Seems that most of my readers so far, including yourself, are in the thick of a cold winter so maybe my post warmed them up a tad (or ticked them off). Either way, stay warm my friend and thanks for your lovely words. Happy February. 🙂

Wonderful trip Miriam but I don;t think we would have survived those incredible temperatures. I know its hot in the summer down under but its been crazy hot this year hasn’t it? Slightly different from the freezing cold and ice we’re experiencing at the moment here in England. Lovely photos and Horseshoe Bay looks idyllic.

wow bought back lots of memories … love the Gramps and spent a lot of time at Port Elliot as a dear friend has a lovely property there! But your right its the journey offers a different perspective
Looking forward to hearing more about your magazine ❤

Beautiful post Miriam and yes, Australia being a whole continent is more diverse than
most countries. How wonderful is that. As to climate, we’ll, there is the North and South Pole
and this worshipped sun of ours. 😊.
We have had reports about your extreme heat and it is far beyond my comfort level.
By the sea guess it is bearable.
Good for you to spend time with family and friends, they are the mainstay of our lives.
🤗
miriam

I’m with you, Miriam. It’s been way too hot this summer. You’re very brave camping in that heat but at least you had the beautiful bay nearby for a dip. Did any of your belongings ‘melt’ in the camper? Your trip sounds lovely, however, and the Grampians have been a favourite of ours too although we haven’t visited in a long time (I will never attempt Mt Difficult again though! Horrible walk with a disappointing end! 😄). All the best with your new beginnings this year.

I’m not sure if I’d describe myself as “brave”, our site was booked way before the high temps were predicted but Port Elliot was a gorgeous place. As is the Grampians. I’m not sure if I’ve done Mt Difficult, or if I want to after your comment! 😬 Thanks for your good wishes Kim, always nice to hear fro you. I hope you have a great month ahead.

Magnificent photos Miriam but like you I think I’ve had enough of the heat and humidity now. I just did a yoga session and I’m dripping wet! It wasn’t even a hot yoga class just so humid today in Brisbane. Still it could be worse we could be freezing! Have a great weekend. xx

Hey Miriam it really has been pretty intense heatwise and we are enjoying these couple of days of cool temps before it heats up again at the weekend. Did I see you on TV with your hubby at the Paul Kelly concert in Sydney? I can’t remember but I think it was NY Eve, but my memory is not serving me well today. If it wasn’t you it was your doppelganger having a ball. Wonderful photo’s.

Thanks Barbara and nope, it wasn’t me, but your comment did make me laugh. I’m off to see Phil Collins tomorrow night but it must have been my lookalike at the Paul Kelly concert! Enjoy the brief respite from the heat Barbara and have a great weekend. 😊

Loved your photos and narration Miriam, No way could I stand that sort of heat I think, I get hot and bothered in our hot summer last year of 28C so goodness knows how in the 40’s feel. I bet that sand was hot beneath the feet.
And Horseshoe Bay looks beautiful..
January has flown, I am sitting now looking at the snow falling, it looks like it may well set in for the day, but we are lucky its not been as bad here as down the south of England.. or for that matter the Polar Vortex crossing the USA of such deep low temps.
I have a blogging friend and she said she wished she had some of the cool snow, at least she said she could add layers, where as you can not peel much more away lol..
Have a beautiful February and I hope that your temps get back to normal and bearable.
And sometimes Blogging has to take a back seat.. Something I am learning to do..

I remember our trip to Australia. The temperature between Sydney and Cairns were so different, even sizes of plants are different. It seems like the summer could be fun but the heat was not pleasant. Your photos look wonderful. Thank you for sharing, Miriam.

There is beautiful summer weather and then there are the extremes you’ve been suffering recently. Here, the summer days just continue with 30+ days and pleasant nights. No rain though, that is all way to the north of us. Happy February, Miriam.

Enjoy the warmth, Miriam! It’s been freezing here, although today and tomorrow are a welcome respite. But I do know what you mean, as by the final month of our summer I am also well and truly tired of the heat. You are wise to travel to the beach and enjoy the outdoors while you can! Life is so diverse, all we can do is embrace it.

Hi there, lovely to read your blog about Australia, as it is a country I have never been to but look forward to having the opportunity to explore one day in the future hopefully. Many of my school peers from South Africa settled there and I think it would be great fun to visit them eventually.

I have been reading about the intense heat and the forest fires and am glad to read that the worst is behind you all. Climate change is creating record heat and other weather related extremes that will challenge us all as we move forward.

Hi Peta, thank you for reading and for your lovely comment. I hope you get to Australia one day, there’s a lot of diverse land to explore over here. And it sounds like you’d have your accomodation sorted too! Yes, we’ve had a particularly hot summer and I don’t think we’re quite finished yet, though hopefully those extreme days will be fewer.

Hi Miriam,
The heat sounds like simply TOO MUCH of a good thing. But as you know, folks here in the northern US and in Canada have been freezing!!! There just seems to be more and more of these extremes…
I enjoyed reading about your summer adventures; life will settle down to it’s routines soon enough. I feel like I also have not spent as much time on my blog these last couple of weeks, but just being focused on family and making memories crowded it out…and I’m ok with that. Priorities.

Lovely photos Miriam!! I remember the heat of Florida. Unfortunately, the gorgeous beaches of some places come with unbearable heat!! Year 12 is an exciting one!! My second son graduates from high school in 3 months!​

It does happen way too fast!! He is taking some time off to decide his next path and will do some type of work to pay his bills. He won’t be 18 until August so I think he plans to save up for some travels. He’s in his 5th year of Spanish and will graduate with bilingual certification, so I’m hoping to tag along and let him do the talking if he goes to Spain ;). Our oldest finishes welding school around the same time, so there will be LOTS of transistions. 🙂

Sounds like an exciting time for everyone. I like the idea of letting him do the talking while you tag along on a Spanish adventure. Sounds like fun! All the best to all of them and to you too Amy. Change affects everyone. xx

What a lovely summer sojourn through your words, I’m also sitting by a wintry scene outside my windows with a cup of chai tea nearby…I love the joy that sings on your pages…I also love the trust you have in the current extremes we’re all experiencing on our beautiful planet…thank you for reminding us of that, Miriam!

I’m a wonder lusting woman, an adventurer and freelance travel writer, passionate about travel, exploring our world and inspiring others to go after their dreams. I’m a big believer in turning the ordinary moments into extraordinary ones.